The Good Ol' Days – A Prayer
Well, here we go again.
Yes, it’s remarkable that these terrorist attacks haven’t happened more often since 9/11. True. There are lots of people to thank for that and there are reasons to be grateful.
But that is of no comfort to the victims of yesterday’s bombings. April 15, 2013 AM . . . all is well, families are excited to be going to the marathon. Spring is here. No April 15th will ever pass in the same way in Boston again.
One day you’ll tell your children or your grandchildren of the good ol’ days. They might roll their eyes or just respond with a blank stare.
The other day at church, someone came up to me and mentioned they had found an old cassette tape of one of my early projects. Their children looked at them like they were from Mars. Never heard the words “cassette tape”.
In some ways, the good ol’ days weren’t that great. New technologies have made life . . . what? Simpler? Easier? While I like having a microwave oven and a cell phone with all kinds of info and resources at my fingertips, I’m not sure I’d define my life as “simpler” or “easier”. Busier and a bit more demanding, maybe.
And the good ol’ days weren’t good because of what we did or didn’t have. They were good because people were more generous, kinder, more patient and more reverent. No matter what era, those are good things.
I won’t reminisce only to lament loss of innocence. You can’t turn back the clock. That’s like trying to get people to stop using cell phones in their cars. That floodgate is open and will be impossible to close. I’m sad that becoming less generous, less kind and less reverent has put us in an entitled state that’s hypnotic. Instead of circling back and recapturing the best of who we were and are as people, we’ve abandoned the thought of personal sacrifice for the sake of less and less freedom and for security at all cost. And there is simply no way to keep us safe and secure all the time.
The strange thing is, becoming more reverent and generous and kind will put us in a posture of serving others, of serving and acknowledging our need for God. It will make us trust Him to intervene in the seen and unseen. To trust Him with whatever happens. I think the reason I don’t care for that kind of thinking is because it takes me out of the driver’s seat.
Probably, one of the main reasons people reject a life of faith in Christ and trust in God is simply this – we don’t want anyone telling us what to do!
Well, our way isn’t working out so well. Sometimes the best thing to do is the opposite of our natural inclinations. We’re schooled to react instead of act. Being proactive in the face of catastrophe, whether personal or on a national scale, might be the better move – aggressive faith, aggressive service, love and kindness.
Heal Our Land